Healing
by shelvesinthecloset
Summary: After killing his brother, Sasuke comes to a hard realization. Is it too late to fix the mess he's made? Can Ino help him get his life back, or is she too far gone down her own path to care?
1. Chapter 1

AN: Okay, here's the deal. It has come to my attention that recent events in the manga may not really agree with how this story begins. Please keep in mind that I've had this idea forever, and so I'm not about to change it. Also that I'm not caught up in the manga, so I only really know this because of hints I've gotten while reading stories here... It actually made me consider not posting this, but I promised I would. So we'll see what you guys think. This chapter is mostly just a teaser, the story actually starts in the next chapter.

Oh, and Happy Birthday, Sasuke. I'm going to work now, so hopefully I'll get an idea for a cute oneshot that would make a nicer birthday fic than this...

* * *

**Chapter One:**

"Sasuke-kun!" a giggling voice called out to him. Irritated he ignored the girlish squeal and continued looking at the ground as he waited for his sensei to arrive.

"Sasuke-kun," his teammate called again and holding in a sigh he raised his head to meet her eyes.

"Hi Sasuke-kun," she said cheerily, blushing a little.

Sasuke grunted in response. Why wouldn't she leave him alone?

"So, I was wondering if you wanted to get dinner with me later today?" she asked. Her gaze had dropped to where her foot was tracing designs in the dirt. "You know, so we could work on our teamwork?" she raised her eyes and met his piercing gaze once more. Sasuke was actually amazed to see hope sparkling in her green eyes. You'd have thought she would have given up after all the times he had rejected her.

"No," he said turning and walking a few feet away from her to avoid any further questioning.

"Oh – okay then," she said sadly.

"Sakura-chan!" an equally obnoxious, although much louder, voice chimed in. It was Naruto; the blonde idiot was running up to his teammates, panting a little. He had obviously been in hearing range before – either that or he recognized the looks on his teammates' faces. It wouldn't be that surprising, this scene felt like it was repeated far too often for Sasuke's taste.

"Sakura-chan I'll go out with you after training!" Naruto offered. It was almost amusing for Sasuke to see that Naruto's eyes were like a mirror for Sakura's own just moments earlier. And of course, watching his pink-haired teammate pound on Naruto was also a constant source of amusement.

It was then that Sasuke's attention was called to a whirl of blonde on the top of the hill. It was that other annoying girl, and her teammates. None of them were any good, he thought with disdain. At least Naruto could occasionally surprise him with something interesting.

The blonde – Yamanaka Ino, he remembered – turned to say something to her teammates before she came bounding down the hill.

He could never decide if she was better or worse than Sakura. On the one hand, Sakura never invaded his personal space as much as this girl. On the other hand, at least Ino never actually expected Sasuke to respond – or even acknowledge her presence really. She didn't come across as quite as pathetic as Sakura somehow…

His thoughts were cut off when he felt Ino jump onto his back and glomp him with a tight hug.

"Hi Sasuke-kun," she chirped in his ear.

The stoic boy repressed the urge to grin at her antics. She was gutsy, he had to give her that. Not only did she risk him physically (and painfully) removing her every time she did that – although maybe she didn't see it as being much of a risk anymore, as she did this fairly frequently and he had yet to throw her off – but she also faced Sakura's wrath…which come to think of it wasn't all that terrifying. So maybe she wasn't gutsy, but she sure as hell wasn't as timid as Sakura, and that was refreshing.

"Get off my Sasuke-kun you stupid pig!" Sakura yelled at Ino.

Ino, thankfully, did not yell back. He'd often hear her yelling at her teammates from several streets away, and it wasn't particularly pleasant. He imagined it could only be worse with her mouth right next to his ear. Instead she contented herself with sticking her tongue out at Sakura and pulling down her lower eyelid in a completely childish gesture. It would have looked asinine on anyone else, but on Ino it looked almost…cute?

She wrapped her arms tightly around him once more -

And then disappeared leaving Sasuke all alone in a dark mist.

Uchiha Sasuke awoke with a start and a groan. He groggily tried to remember where he was and as his head turned to take in his surroundings the sight that met his eyes served as a harsh reminder.

There, lying just a few meters away, was his brother – Itachi Uchiha.

Sasuke slowly made his way to his feet. He was incredibly tired and disoriented – probably due to chakra exhaustion. Looking down at the body of his brother – now broken and mangled and almost unrecognizable due to their fight – Sasuke felt an intense wave of sorrow pass through him. What was he supposed to do now?

Staring down at the only family member he'd had left, Sasuke came to the realization that he was absolutely alone in this world. He'd pushed everyone away who had tried to help him and he had killed his last remaining family member. He'd become the same as the person he'd loathed the most.

Deep down, wasn't all he'd ever really wanted was recognition? He'd looked up to and respected his brother, and tried so very hard for his father's approval. All he'd wanted was someone who would love him unconditionally and who would never betray him… and he'd pushed them all away – and for what? Nothing. His life was meaningless and empty now, and so was he.

…Then he remembered _her_. Hadn't he just dreamed about her? Maybe his subconscious brain was telling him the answer before he had even recognized the issue.

She was the one girl who had always made his heart beat a little faster as a child, who he had repeatedly shoved away and who had continued to come back and wrap her arms around him, holding him together when he thought he would fly apart. She had loved him; he could see it in her eyes.

His mind made up he quickly severed his older brother's head, not even flinching as the metal blade of his katana cut through the flesh, muscle, and bone of what remained of his last family member. Stuffing the head in a sack sealed to preserve its contents – a sack that was by no means empty before the new addition – Sasuke burned the body of Itachi, staying to make sure that all that remained were ashes and dust, before turning and heading back to Konoha. The place he had once called home. The village he had abandoned. Her.

The sole remaining Uchiha knows it is likely that she hates him now, but he has to see, he has to fight for any chance he has left at happiness and a life. His drifting mind is haunted by images of blue eyes – the woman he loves (is she even still alive?) and the best friend he betrayed… all mixed up and super-imposed in his crazed consciousness.

* * *

Alright, I'm not particularly thrilled with this chapter and I'm trying to decide if I even want to continue with this story. I really like some aspects of it (the story), but others I'm not so sure of. Reviews would be greatly appreciated. I'll try to finish the next chapter soon so you guys can actually get a hint at what the story will be like.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: well, it's a little longer than the last chapter...heh heh. I have to say that once again this did not turn out as I had expected. I had planned on going into much more detail about Ino's day to establish her character (and flaws) right away. All well, it's done. I think I'm going to blame my lack of inspiration on the fact that my laptop broke just over a month ago. I was using my cousins, as she has microsoft word on her laptop (even if it is a mac) but she's on vacation right now... so all I have is the main computer, which is a mac. I hate macs. I loathe them with a fiery passion. Seriously.

and guess what, this one doesn't even have word! so forgive any errors please, I'm once again uploading without much proof-reading (because I wanted you to know I am continuing this story) and I didn't even have my beloved Microsoft word (tears).

**Chapter Two:**

Looking back at her life, Ino was quite proud of herself for how far she'd come. Actually, all of the former rookie 9 had done quite well for themselves, as well as Team Gai – rookie 8! Why did she always want to say 9? He had left along time ago, and Ino was convinced that he no longer deserved (or even wanted to be) associated with Konoha in any way. So she called them the rookie 8, and although many people looked at her like she was crazy, the rest of the group understood her need to block him from her life, as though he had never existed. Unlike Sakura, Ino had never had any closure, and so it wasn't something she could easily deal with. Besides, the one thing Ino hated above all else was traitors – ironically this hatred had started when Itachi's betrayal had broken Sasuke…

Cutting her wandering thoughts short Ino began to mentally and physically prepare herself for a long day. She was head of the Torture and Interrogation Department now – Ibiki had retired the previous year. Shikamaru had done quite well for himself and was her immediate superior – he was head of Intelligence and Foreign Affairs. Neji was the ANBU captain and Sakura was the head medic at the hospital.

Of course Naruto had gone and proven himself right, and was training under Tsunade to be the next Hokage.

She quickly ate some breakfast before pulling her long hair up into it's traditional pony-tail and heading out to work, already trying to remember who she was seeing today and how best to break them down.

"Good morning Shikamaru!" she said cheerily as she breezed past his office to head into her own special domain.

"Ino," he acknowledged. "Could we try that herbal mixture out today?"

Halting her progress down the hall Ino swerved into his office. "You know it's probably not ready, right?" she reminded him.

"We'll never know unless we try," he shrugged. "Plus, Choji needs to see the reaction if we're going to rework the quantities."

Ino nodded. "Is he here today?"

"He gave his team the day off, said he'd drop by this morning."

"Alright," Ino decided. "I've got some guinea pigs. Meet me in my office in about half an hour." And then she was gone, already moving her schedule around in her mind to accommodate this last minute change.

Ino, Shikamaru, and Choji had been working on a mixture that was basically a sort of mental 'relaxant.' It caused the taker to fall into a mental stupor that basically made him (or her) to stupid to realize they needed to lie. Ino supposed you could refer to it as a truth potion. All three of them were convinced they could get it to work – with Ino's knowledge of plants, Shikamaru's access to the Nara clans records, and Choji's knowledge of food and the human body their endeavor was bound to succeed…eventually. It just hadn't yet.

Their last test subject had fallen into a mental stupor so deep her brain had forgotten to tell her heart to beat, and the one before that had had an allergic reaction that caused all his skin to fall off. It wasn't pretty, but they had all seen worse.

Ino occupied herself with paper work and meeting with various subordinates until Choji arrived.

"Have you picked the subject?" Shikamaru asked her.

Ino nodded and waved a file in the air as she hastily downed a final sip of coffee before leading the way out of her office and into one of her cells which were hidden deep in the earth below the main building.

"Arakida Reizo," she said, waving the same file she'd held earlier at the one-way window. "A shinobi from the land of lightning. Male, seventeen years old, six feet tall and a hundred and fifty pounds. The specimen is in perfect health and a prime candidate for our tests. He was a chunin of next to no importance, and we've already extracted all the information from him. He isn't likely to be of value to the Raikage, so there is no possibility of exchanging him for any prisoners of ours they may have – so it's okay if we kill him."

Shikamaru and Choji nodded their understanding, and Choji began preparing the mixture in accordance with the subject's vital statistics.

When he was finished he gave it to Ino. "This time it will work more effectively if he digests it," he warned. Their previous experiments at intravenous solutions had all failed miserably.

Ino nodded dumped the solution into a glass of juice – it wasn't quite tasteless, so water didn't work, but cranberry juice hid the flavour quite well and the acid acted as a catalyst and hastened the subject's reaction (at least that's what Choji theorized).

Previously Reizo had been interrogated by one of her junior staff members, who had used standard techniques to gather information – Reizo had been an easy nut to crack. So as the twenty-two year old blonde slipped through the door she adopted a more seductive sway and girlish tone of voice.

"Hi," she said a trifle shyly as she moved to sit on the floor in front of him.

Reizo didn't respond, but she caught the way his eyes flickered across her form and hid a grin.

"My name is Ino," she offered.

Her test subject only grunted.

"Look," Ino offered, letting her voice reflect empathy and sorrow she didn't feel. "I'm really sorry about what my boss did to you, he's a cruel man. You didn't deserve that."

Now Reizo raised his head to meet hers. "So now you're going to pretend to be my friend and try to get more information out of me? Well to bad, I'm not telling you anything."

"What, do you have something else to tell us?" Ino asked, raising an eyebrow in obvious disbelief.

Reizo remained silent, and Ino sighed. This was a normal reaction for his type. He had obviously already told everything he knew, but was afraid of being seen as worthless and killed. At the same time he was scared of them interrogating him for more information. It was pathetic really.

"Sorry," Ino said softly. "I didn't mean to sound so sharp…it's just that my boss is very thorough."

Reizo nodded his head in agreement before he caught himself and glared at her.

"I can see you don't want me here," Ino said with a sigh. She raised the glass to her lips as though taking a sip and then put it back down on the table. Noticing the way Reizo's greedy eyes followed the glass she wordlessly offered it to him.

He froze for a moment, torn by fear and indecision, before he snatched the glass from her hands and downed the drink in one gulp. Ino grinned at him and then left the cell before he realized what was going on.

On the other side of the wall Shikamaru, Ino and Choji all gathered around the one-way window to watch his reaction.

Reizo looked from the door to the empty glass of juice in front of him in obvious confusion.

"Wait for it, and 3 – 2 – 1," Choji whispered. All of a sudden Reizo started clawing at his own skin and screaming, but they couldn't hear what he was saying through the sound-proof walls.

"Is that hallucinations or pain?" Shikamaru.

Ino shrugged and looked at Choji.

"Hallucinations," Choji clarified before mumbling to himself about too much of this or that.

When the boy started shredding and tearing off his own skin, Choji looked away with a pained expression on his face. Even Shikamaru looked a little green. Ino kept watching with a slightly bored expression on her face until the writhing, bloody mass stopped moving.

"Interesting," she noted before saying farewell to her friends and leaving to find someone to clean out the cell – sooner or later (probably sooner) someone else was going to need it.

"Do you think she'll ever get over it?" Choji asked a little sadly. Shikamaru could only shrug, and the two friends followed their blonde ex-teammate out of the cells.

The rest of the day was fairly straight-forward and passed by in a blur. She used seduction techniques on one prisoner and learned about a spy in the ranks of those responsible for assigning missions in time to prevent him from causing any serious damage. She got to work out some latent frustration she'd been carrying around by physically torturing a shinobi until he revealed some incriminating evidence against Iwagakure. She even got to use her shintenshin (although this was never a pleasant experience she felt like she didn't have enough people to train it on, so she relished the opportunity) to extract the layout of a building that the Hokage was planning on sending assassins to - and then erased the memories and planted new ones so he would go back and report false information to the grass leader's advisor. All in all a good days work.

It was a busy day, even for Ino - she often only had to supervise - but she felt well-worked and contented as she headed home for a shower, a quick meal, and then sleep. Ah, sleep, what a blessed thing.

--

The Hokage was working late in her office, as usual. She was just considering a sake break when she sensed something...something _off_.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Tsunade asked, in no way looking forward to dealing with whoever it was. She channelled chakra to her arms in preparation for smashing the hiding nin to smithereens.

"I know you're there! Show yourself!" It was actually a little frightening. They weren't many people who could hide themselves this well from the Hokage of the leaf village.

Suddenly an unfamiliar dark-haired man stepped out of the shadows, the spinning red eyes informing her immediately of his identity.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Tsunade gasped, shocked. What could he be doing in her office?

"I've come back," he said clearly, although his voice was rough from disuse.

"You know I can't just take you word on that," Tsunade shook her head in disbelief. Arrogant brat. Yet she got the feeling he was telling the truth, there was a sort of wild, desperate look about him... besides, if he'd been trying to kill her he would have done it right away, while he had the element of surprise.

Sasuke wordlessly threw a bag on her desk. Eyeing it warily Tsunade opened it - revealing the blood-drenched heads of Orochimaru and Itachi Uchiha.

Holding back the urge to vomit, Tsunade quickly shut the bag. Attempting to maintain her Hokage-like calm she looked at the Uchiha levelly. "I guess the rumours were true. Why did you come back?"

"There's something I need to do," he said evasively.

"Very well, before you can re-enter the village you will be held for questioning." Rising abruptly she advanced on the dark-haired avenger.

"I can't," Sasuke said, a trifle desperately. "I need to see Ino."

"Yes, I think you're right," the Hokage said with a grin before knocking the Uchiha unconscious and calling some ANBU to take him to a holding cell.

Alright, Ino and Sasuke meet in the next chapter. I had up to chapter three plotted out before I started writing this, but after that I'm going to be completely lost... so just a heads up, I may write myself into a corner. I've been known to do that if I'm not careful, as I sort of let the characters take control of the story. No worries though, I always work it out...eventually.

On a completely unrelated note, I was watching Death Note (I've never really been into anime/manga until recently so I constantly discover 'new' things. I'm going to stop now though. I only watched it because I loved the displays of genius between L and Kira...without L... Needless to say I was horribly upset. At the same time though, I greatly admire the writer. You could see that they gave their characters complete free reign, not trying to force them into a set plot - so we got to see very interesting battles of wit. The result was tragic (L! sob) but I'm completely in awe of their ability. Sigh. It only makes me feel more inadequate, but at the same time, it was incredibly inspiring. And maybe I'll learn from it and be able to do better.

Anyways, catch ya next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Sorry about the language in this chapter. And there's a bit of violence. The next one will probably have more, but we'll see when I write it. I might have to change the rating of the story to 'M' but I'll try to keep it toned down - it's just such an essential part of the story. Also, I think I like this chapter better than the previous two, so YAY, that means I won't hate this story any more. And hopefully you'll all enjoy it more as well.

On another note I had a reviewer comment on the fact that Ino shouldn't interrogate Sasuke, because that idea is over done. I'd just like to address that right now, in case anyone had similar thoughts. I understand your point, I really do. BUT the whole story hinges on that fact. Besides, I like the idea, and I like reworking overused ideas. My favourite story so far of mine (A Matter of State) is based on an arranged marriage, which is an incredibly overused plot device. I think I pulled it off rather well, regardless. I think it's just how I write. Even my original work tends to be...well, it's hard to explain. If anyone desires an explanation for some strange reason, feel free to PM me. However I don't think most of you care, so on with the story!

Oh, wait, one more thing. It's IMPORTANT. Sasuke is not OOC, ok. I believe that his behaviour is perfectly compatible with what we (well, I, since most of you probably are ahead of me in the story) know of his character and how he would react under these circumstances. He's insane, not out of character. I hate writing out of character, then there's no point in using that character. I mean, he may not be perfect, as I've not written much with him before, but I like to think that both Sasuke and Ino are IN CHARACTER, it's just certain aspects of their characters that I'm drawing on for this story. If any of you still think they are out of character, please review or message me and I'll work on it. Alright? Now that that's out of the way, as well as what is probably the longest author's note I've ever written, please read what you actually came here to read.

Chapter 3:

Ino was not even remotely amused when she was hauled out of bed after only a few precious hours of sleep. Raidou, who had come to fetch her, was greeted at the door by a sleepy, disheveled, and furious Yamanaka.

"What the hell do you want?" she demanded when her gaze fell on the jounin as he fought the urge to cower.

"You're required in the Interrogation chambers, Yamanaka-san," the man said a trifle timidly.

"Piss off," Ino said before turning to resume her sleep. "Whoever it is can wait until morning."

"Afraid not," he said with a small grin. "Hokage says you're to come directly. It seems you were specifically requested."

Ino's mind stumbled over that last piece of information. Why would anyone _request_ her as their interrogator? She must have misheard Raidou. Too tired to really care Ino told the jounin she'd be there as soon as she was ready.

--

Ino stood in front of her Hokage, fidgeting restlessly. Part of her was curious as to who was so important the head interrogator had to be hauled in in the middle of the night. Leaving a prisoner stewing in a cell never did anything but good. Most of her however just wanted to go back to bed. She had some new recruits coming in tomorrow – well, later today technically – and they always required more patience than she generally had, even with a good night sleep.

For her part, Tsunade was just staring at Ino, measuring her. Was the girl really ready for this? Tsunade was tempted to call Ibiki back in, but a niggling feeling told her that if anyone was going to get Sasuke to speak, it would be Ino.

Sighing Tsunade pushed a file across her desk and waited while Ino impatiently snatched it up and opened it. Only to drop it again in shock, eyes wide as she gently shook her head in denial.

"Wh – wh – no!" was all the poor blonde could get out.

"He asked for you specifically, Ino," Tsunade said gently. "Not as his interrogator of course, he had no idea, but he wanted to see you."

"Don't lie to me!" Ino snapped. "I'm not some love-struck twelve year old anymore and I don't want to see that traitorous bastard ever again! You already know he's guilty so just kill him already, what do you need me to interrogate him for?"

"Ino, he came back on his own, as you've probably figured out since Naruto's not here. He wants to rejoin the village."

"What? So you're just going to let him waltz back in after he – it's a trap. It has to be. Orochimaru-"

"Orochimaru's dead, Ino. He killed him. Itachi too." Tsunade was starting to lose patience with the younger blonde. Of course she empathized with her – she knew all about the Sasuke – Sakura – Ino situation from Sakura. At the same time Ino had a duty as a shinobi of Konoha, and she was neglecting this duty. She was also arguing with her Hokage, and Tsunade had a very low tolerance for that.

"Doesn't mean it's not a trap," Ino said stubbornly.

"I know, that's why you're interrogating him."

"Tamaki can do it," Ino said, referring to her second in command.

"No. I need you to do it. This is to important to leave any room for doubt."

"Ib-"

"Ibiki can not do it, Ino. You _will_ make your way down to his cell and _you_ will interrogate him. He asked for you. I don't know why but I wasn't lying. That means you are somehow connected to his return. I don't care what you do to him, but find out what's really going on in his head. If he wants to return you will report that to me and you will _not_ take matters into your own hands. If I find out you've killed him or driven him insane so help me Ino but I will relieve you of your position not only as Head of Interrogation but also of your position as a shinobi. You will be thorough, you will do whatever you think is necessary, but you will not cause any unnecessary harm, am I perfectly clear?"

Ino glared at her Hokage defiantly for a moment longer before lowering her gaze and sullenly nodding her head.

"Good. Now go get started already." Tsunade said dismissively. "Oh, and Ino," the Hokage added before the interrogator had reached the door. "Just because you have to keep him in one piece doesn't mean you have to be nice about it."

Ino grinned wryly at her Hokage before exiting the room and making her way to her own domain – which she had a feeling was about to become her personal hell.

--

Sasuke looked up wearily when the door to his cell opened. The sight that met his eyes shocked him and filled him with a strange sense of unreal joy. Had she actually come to see him in this horrible and desolate place? She must still love him!

"I-Ino?" Sasuke croaked as he took her in. She was taller now, obviously. It had been ten years since he had last seen her. She had developed very nicely, and was curvy in that lean, kunoichi way. And her hair, it was still the same beautiful blonde. He felt like sunlight was penetrating his dark cell. And more importantly the golden locks were still long. A smile tried to form on his face, but it was too unpracticed and died before any signs appeared other than a small twitch. He remembered the rumour that had gone around in the Academy days – that he liked girls with long hair. He had no idea how that rumour got started – he actually wouldn't have been surprised to hear Ino had started it herself – but that didn't make it any less true. It seemed she had kept her hair long, and a part of Sasuke was convinced it was for him. What other reason could there be? It was completely impractical.

"Uchiha," Ino nodded her head coldly at him, stepping aside as Tamaki followed her into the room.

Of course, Sasuke realized, eyeing the man warily. They wouldn't just let her in here without a guard.

"Tsunade said you wanted to see me?" Ino asked, deciding to try the easy way first.

Sasuke nodded slowly, still staring at the man on Ino's right.

"Why?" the blonde asked bluntly.

"I-" Sasuke tried to say but his throat was to dry. Ino signaled and the man next to her stepped forward and pressed a glass of water to Sasuke's lips. He would have hit that man away and done it himself, but he was currently tied to a chair. Breaking free might scare Ino, and he didn't want to do that.

"I won't hurt you, you can send the guard away," he said when he was finished drinking. His voice was unemotional, but his eyes were almost pleading.

Ino bit back a barking laugh. "He's not here to guard me, and he stays."

Sasuke was startled. Why else was the strange man here…unless he was her boyfriend. Jealousy and anger seethed through him and he immediately wrenched free of the bindings and started towards the door – towards Ino and her _lover_.

At least, until laughter, not gentle but cold and mocking, filled the air again.

"You really have slipped Uchiha, I can read your emotions like an open book, even without slipping into your mind. Tamaki is _not_ my lover. He's my assistant."

Sasuke froze, confusion painted across his face.

Ino laughed for a third time and decided that Sasuke was clearly not in his right mind, so she wouldn't be believing whatever he decided to tell her now anyway. And as fun as tormenting this new Sasuke was, there were so many ways for her to get to him, she might as well start treating this like a standard interrogation.

"Tamaki, if you could get measurements," Ino said, and Tamaki nodded and pulled out a measuring tape. Health of prisoners had to be carefully monitored – especially those under interrogation. Tamaki approached Sasuke, but as he reached out the tape Sasuke pushed Ino's brunette assistant harshly away and was suddenly on the other side of the cell.

Sasuke had no idea what was going on, but he wasn't going to let some random anywhere near him.

Tamaki, after picking himself up off the floor, looked at Ino for more orders.

"Don't worry about it Tamaki, I'll deal with him. You go run the rest of the office for today, alright? Those new recruits should be here in a few hours. Settle them in and try to weed out some of the weaker ones."

"Are you sure?" her assistant asked, concerned for his boss' well-being.

Ino turned her analytical gaze from Sasuke to Tamaki. "Why, do you think I can't handle him?" she asked, arching an eyebrow at the brunette.

"N-no. But well, h-he's," Tamaki stuttered, torn between a desire to protect his boss – who he respected very much, but still – and his fear of disobeying her and thereby incurring her infamous and formidable wrath.

"I'll be fine Tamaki, I promise," she said gently, appreciating his concern even if it was misplaced. "Just don't let anyone disturb us today, all right?"

Tamaki nodded and headed out the door.

Ino stood still for a moment and looked Sasuke over once more, trying to figure out what exactly had happened to the arrogant, self-confident, and oh so attractive twelve year old boy she had known. Not that he wasn't still attractive, Ino wasn't foolish enough to deny that. He just seemed so…broken. And if the brushes she'd made against his mind were correct, there was a large possibility that he was completely insane, or at least deranged. What was she supposed to do with him then?

"If I come to do your physical you're not going to throw me across the room as well, are you?" she asked bluntly.

Sasuke hesitated for a second, and then shook his head no, wide-eyed.

Ino quickly and efficiently crossed the room, giving him a thorough physical examination as she measured his height and width, copied down his weight, and scanned his body with her medical chakra to check the nutrient levels in his body.

How was he still standing?

"When was the last time you ate an actual meal?" she asked bemusedly.

Sasuke shrugged, he really didn't remember.

"I'll be right back," Ino said, sighing. She wouldn't be able to get anything from him until he was at least a little better.

But before she could get out the door, Sasuke was in front of her, blocking her escape.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to get you something to eat," Ino said briskly in an attempt to stay calm. He moved faster than anyone she'd ever seen – and that included Lee.

Reluctantly the ex-avenger stepped aside, his longing eyes following her until she'd shut and locked the door behind her.

--

Ino was relieved when she decided that Sasuke was well enough to actually be interrogated. The baby-sitting was really starting to get to her. She'd spent all day, every day for the past month getting the Uchiha to an acceptable level of physical health. His emotional and mental states seemed marginally more stable, but he wouldn't let anyone but her into his cell. It was emotionally and physically exhausting for Ino, and the stress was starting to get to her. No one aside from her, Tsunade and a few select ANBU even knew that Sasuke was back – Tsunade wanted it kept a secret until she knew for certain that it wasn't a trick. Sakura and Tenten, her two best friends, knew something was going on at work, but they remained oblivious to the real reason behind her stress. She hadn't seen them in three weeks, and the same was true of Choji and Naruto. She saw Shikamaru sometimes on her way to or from work, but right now her life consisted of sleep and Sasuke. It was almost ironic, she reflected bitterly. As a child she'd wasted all her time worrying about what he thought of her, and her neglect in training had cost the life of her sensei. Now she was wasting all her time worrying about the bastard's health of all things, and it was probably going to kill her. A small part of her whispered that at least then it would all be over, while another, in an even quieter voice, told her that she should just be glad he came back at all. She brutally stomped on both voices, refusing to succumb to weakness or emotion. She was a kunoichi, a tool, and she was strong.

Ino strode purposefully into Sasuke's cell that morning, intent on establishing the true nature of their relationship now that she was assured that he wasn't going to die from malnutrition before he told her what she had to know.

Sasuke, for his part, perked up considerably when the door opened. She'd come back to him, just like she had every morning for the past month. A part of him wasn't entirely certain why she was allowed in here – he'd decided she must be his medic or something - and why he wasn't released if Tsunade was never going to send an interrogator, but he was not going to complain about time spent with Ino. Sure, she seemed different than she had when they were younger, the freely given affection she'd showered on everyone was replaced with a cold-eyed wariness, but Sasuke was convinced that that was only because she wasn't sure why he was here. Once she knew that he'd come back for her she would embrace him and cry tears of joy…or something like that. Truth be told he was a little vague on exactly how that whole scene was going to go, but he was convinced it would be happy, and then he could finally move on in his life.

He was not prepared for Ino marching up to him (he'd been retied to his chair the previous evening, and he'd stayed put this time) and asking in a very no nonsense tone of voice just why exactly he'd come back.

"To see you," Sasuke explained, wondering why she seemed so different – so much less gentle – than she had been just yesterday.

He was definitely not prepared for a chakra laden fist crashing into his stomach.

"Try again," Ino said in a cold voice as she stepped back, admiring her work as he sat hunched over in his chair, coughing up blood.

"Wh-why are you doing this?" the confused man asked.

"I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Yamanaka Ino, Head of Konoha's Torture and Interrogation unit. You are Uchiha Sasuke, missing-nin and enemy of the Fire Nation. Does that make everything more clear? Good. Now tell me why you're here!" Her fist swung around again, not reinforced with chakra as she smashed it into his face as she needed him to be able to speak.

In that instant Sasuke's mind was only filled with one horrible, world-wrenching thought. She doesn't love him. In fact, she hates him. She's only been here because she's responsible for extracting information from him. Tsunade's words before she knocked him unconscious suddenly took on a whole new meaning.

Despair filled Sasuke as he recognized the hopelessness of his situation. He could tell her what she wanted to know – what he'd already told her and she refused to believe – and then she'd leave and he'd probably never see her again. Or if he did it would be from a distance, and she'd stay as far from him as she could.

Alternatively, he could refuse to tell her anything. She'd keep beating him and torturing him for information, but he'd get to see her every day. In fact, she wouldn't be able to see anyone else, all her time would be spent with him. She'd be close to him and he could look at her, and smell the faint scent of flowers that lingered around her form…

For Sasuke's childish and deranged mind, the decision wasn't difficult.

--

* * *

Wow, those two are screwed up beyond belief. All well, it entertains me. I hope you enjoyed seeing more of their insanity. Reviews would be wonderful, especially about things from the Authoer's Note at the beginning, for those of you who read it (I know, it was horribly long forgive me).

This story is just a little out of my comfort zone and I'm trying to figure out why. Well, I know why the next chapter is - brutal violence. I've never written a torture scene before. It should be...interesting.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: I know it's short, but it's what you get. At least I'm updating, right?

I know I said there was going to be torture in this one, and I have to apologize, I didn't live up to that at all as I'd pictured. If it's any consolation, I'm probably more upset than you are - I was really looking forward to torturing Sasuke, he totally deserves it. Instead he got to level the playing field with Ino a bit. Stupid characters taking control of MY story!

All well. I hope you enjoy it!

Oh, and I don't usually dedicate my chapters or stories to anyone, but this one is for Lamanth. She wrote a story not too long ago that really helped me get back into the right mind frame to right this. If I recall correctly, it was called _All The Fleeting Moments_ and the chapter was "Pain." She's a wonderful reviewer too. Anyway, thank-you Lamanth.

* * *

**Chapter 4:**

Breathing heavily, Ino glared at the silent man before. Why wouldn't he break? She'd tried everything she could think of. Aiming a desperate kick to his rib cage she stared at Sasuke, who refused to even flinch. She'd been at this for a month and Sasuke only seemed to grow more sullen. Nothing in her extensive training had prepared her for this eventuality.

Grabbing a bamboo shoot from her belt she brutally jabbed it under his finger nail, expertly digging it in to maximize his pain. Nothing. A big, fat lot of nothing. Training under Ibiki had increased her patience drastically, but she was certain that even her stoic mentor would be exasperated with her current prisoner.

Turning she stalked out of the cell.

Ino was at a loss, she'd beaten him half to death, broken bones, and shoved bamboo up under his finger nails. Sasuke hadn't even flinched – it was unheard of! She'd even dragged Neji in and had him use his byakugan to find and strike his weak points. Sasuke had collapsed at that and a small whimper had escaped his lips, but that was all. He had revealed nothing.

Fine then, her patience was wearing thin. If he wouldn't do this the easy way she'd enter his mind and rip it out of him. Tsunade couldn't get mad at her if his mind was still to fragile to take it, she'd tried every other trick in the book, and quite a few that weren't.

"Good morning Sasuke," Ino said in her usual cheery voice as she entered his cell the following morning. "Today I thought we'd try something a little different."

He raised his head and looked at her levelly, just like he always did.Forming the hand sign and mentally speaking the trigger she launched her consciousness into the air.

She arrived in his mind just in time to watch her body collapse and crumple to the ground. To her shock (and amusement) Sasuke jumped up from the chair in alarm. Binding him had proved futile so she'd given up.

"Ino?" he said, gently shaking her. He was actually concerned! She could see his thoughts clearly. And he was talking!

Not wanting to give this abnormal occurrence any more thought she quickly took possession of his mind and dove into his memories. First she went back to when he'd killed Orochimaru, then Itachi. She sensed no ulteriour motives, and knew that he had returned of his own free will. Continuing through their first meetings and seeing everything from his perspective, Ino was alarmed to discover that he'd thought she still liked him. Heh, no wonder he'd been so shocked when she'd revealed the true nature of their present relationship.

She drew back in alarm from the memories of being tortured. So much pain... not just physical either. An intense emotional suffering was doubly as brutal to her in her present form. And over riding it all a strange sense of...self-satisfaction?

Suddenly walls were slammed down and she felt her consciousness dumped unceremoniously back into her own body.

"Stay out, please," Sasuke said almost mildly. But his eyes were burning with an emotion she couldn't place.

"How?" Ino asked. No one had been able to kick her out before...it was unheard of! Block parts of their mind from her, yes, if they were very strong, but actually force her consciousness away?

"You don't think Orochimaru only taught me how to fight physically do you?" Sasuke said calmly. "He's always had great respect for the Yamanaka clan. It's one of the main reasons he feared Konoha so much and wanted to destroy it. The mind, he believed, can far exceed the body. So it only makes sense he developed methods to repel your attacks."

"B-but," Ino stuttered, more scared than she'd cared to admit. The infallibility of her mental attacks was the one thing she depended on above all else. Physically she was dangerous, but there were many more dangerous. The mind though, that was her realm. The knowledge that the one edge she'd thought she had over Sasuke was completely worthless terrified her.

"You know, he was quite interested in you in particular. I believe he had some plans for you after he took over my body. He was aware of your attraction to me, you see. Of course, a weak body such as yours would never do for his vessel, but if he could get you in other ways...well I sometimes think he might have planned to have you as his consort in the end," Sasuke said, watching her reaction with interest. He'd been silent for long enough. It was...interesting...to watch her reactions to his words now. Even more interesting when he took into consideration that he spoke nothing but the truth.

"Stay away from me!" Ino warned in a trembling voice as she stood up from the ground, having finally recovered from the recoil of being forced out of his mind. She bolted out the door and slammed it shut behind her, drawing a deep breath as she tried to steady herself.

Sasuke was more deranged than she'd thought. She still remembered the feeling of self-satisfaction that outweighed even the pain he'd felt during their torture sessions. He seemed to think he was winning something – but what?

And of course the last little scenario. He was obviously trying to get to her, and he'd shown her that her greatest weapon was almost worthless against him. What exactly was he playing at?"

Ino was still leaning against the wall trying to calm herself down when she heard her name called. Turning in dread she saw the last person she wanted to see right now. Her friend Sakura.

"Hey Ino, what's up? I haven't seen you in ages so I thought I'd drop by here and see you..." her voice trailed off when she caught the cornered look on Ino's face.

"What the hell are you doing here Sakura? How did you get in?" Ino demanded, fear morphing instinctively to anger.

Sakura looked taken aback. "I just told your guard that you were expecting me. What's up with you?"

"You can't be down here right now! And I can't talk to you right now. Get out!"

"Seriously Ino, calm down. What's the matter with you? Is that anyway to treat your friend, sheesh. It's not like I'm going to go peaking around in your cells looking for top-secret prisoners..." she trailed off as Ino froze in fear.

"Sakura, if you do not exit the premises immediately I will have no choice but to use force and speak to Tsunade-sama about this breach in protocol."

More than a little shocked at her friends tone and the nervousness apparent on the blonde's face Sakura nodded her head in acquiescence and retreated.

Ino immediately felt guilty for the way she was treating her friend, but terror at her friend discovering what was going on urged her to get Sakura outside _now_.

She'd make it up to her later, right now she had to speak to Tsunade-sama.

"Come in," Tsunade said, glad to have an excuse to avoid more paperwork. She was even more glad when she saw that it was Ino. Had the girl finally made some progress?

"How goes the interrogation?" Tsunade queried.

"I'm not sure," Ino confessed. "I think I've done all I can."

"What do you know?" Tsunade demanded. If Sasuke really had returned he could be a great asset to her village.

"I was forced to use the shintenshin – I tried physical torture for a month and I got nothing. I know it was a risk, considering his mental state, but I _think_ it was worth it..."

Tsunade merely nodded at the younger blonde to continue.

"It's not a trap, he honestly wants to come back-"

Tsunade refrained from jumping out of her seat in joy. "Excellent, good work Ino. We can remove him from the interrogation cells and begin his rehabilitation into Konoha immediately."

"No!" Ino protested.

Tsunade frowned. "I understand you dislike the boy Ino, but he can be a valuable tool for us. I thought you of all people would understand that."

"There's more!" the kunoichi explained. "He's not – his mind is a mess. He actually _enjoyed_ the torture sessions. He got some sort of self-satisfaction out of them. And I still don't know _why_ he came back."

"Then get back in his head," Tsunade ordered.

"I can't. He – he kicked me out," Ino said shamefacedly, eyes downcast.

Tsunade looked at the girl before her in shock. That was unheard of. The most anyone had ever been able to do was block their mind. Sakura had almost hurt Ino during the girls' first chunin exam, but Ino mental skills had increased dramatically since that time. Nothing like that had happened since.

"You've tried everything else?" the Hokage asked.

"Yes, everything," Ino said, nodding fervently.

"Even seduction?" she questioned, acting on the same hunch that had caused her to send Ino in instead of calling Ibiki back.

"Well, no," Ino sputtered. "He's Sasuke Uchiha, the emotionless ice block. It didn't fit his profile."

Seduction in interrogation terminology basically just meant persuading in a more gentle manner, whatever that may be. It entailed anything from simply being nice to the prisoner to pretending to fall in love with him and 'running away,' even bedding the man if necessary. Anything it took to find out what Konoha needed to know.

"He's not a little boy anymore," Tsunade said, mild amusement lacing her tone. "And you're not a little girl either. You might find things are a bit different now." Tsunade was of the opinion that no man could resist a woman's charms, if she knew how to ensnare them, and she had the utmost faith in Ino in that regard. "Let's go," the Hokage said, standing up from behind her cluttered desk and leading Ino back to the younger blonde's domain. "This I have to see."

* * *

Well, did you like it? Hate it? Disappointed? Happy? Let me know (review)!


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Okay, I know it's short. But think about. My last update was two days ago. I, personally, am very impressed with myself. And it was the natural place to break.

Hope you enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 5:**

Ino entered Sasuke's cell, eyes downcast and body language penitent. Inwardly though, was another matter entirely. She was seething. She did _not_ want to play the part of the pathetic Sasuke fangirl. Besides, it's not like he would buy it now anyway, he'd seen that she hated him – she'd made no attempt to hide that feeling. This whole idea was completely _ridiculous_.

For his part, Sasuke eyed her warily when she entered his cell. Something was different...

"I – I owe you an apology," Ino stammered. "I fear I was a little – overzealous – in my interrogation of you. It's just, you betrayed me once-" Ino paused in an attempt to collect herself, tears rolling openly down her face. "I mean, you betrayed Konoha once already and it is – it was – my duty to make sure you are no longer a threat."

Ino stepped towards the Uchiha and placed a hand on his. He stiffened, but made no attempt to resist her advances.

"I-I told Tsunade-sama that you had no ulteriour motive in coming back. You're free to go now – I just hope you can forgive me-" Ino managed to force out before she threw herself, bawling, into his arms.

Sasuke was unsure of how to deal with this new, emotional Ino. On the one hand, she seemed much more like the crazy, compassionate girl he remembered. On the other, though, this new image didn't fit at all with that of the cold-hearted interrogator he'd grown accustomed to over the last month. Still his arms circled around her to give her a small measure of comfort as he gently rubbed her back. This was the closest he'd gotten to her and he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity.

Perhaps it was this knowledge that caused Sasuke to come to his final decision. Until he figured out what was going on, he was just going to go with it and enjoy having Ino curled up on his lap.

Ino _almost_ stiffened in shock when she felt Sasuke's strong arms wrap around her. But her training kicked in, so instead of jerking away she melted against him. Now she was just confused.

Locking her gaze with his, Ino leaned her chest against his as she asked the important question. "Did – did you really come back for me?"

Keeping their gazes locked Sasuke looked at her in silence. Ino shuddered under the intensity of his gaze – it was like he could see right through her. Slowly, Sasuke nodded.

"Yes," he said, his voice hoarse with emotion. "For you."

"But – why?' she asked helplessly. Unable to hold his gaze any longer she dropped her head and leaned it against his muscular chest.

One of Sasuke's hands crept up her back and began to stroke her hair. "I don't think you'll believe me, but after I killed Itachi, all I could think of was you. Nothing else seemed to matter. Please – you have to believe me," the Uchiha said desperately. "Just give me a chance."

Ino stiffened. She couldn't take this anymore. Tsunade should have let someone else cover this – anyone but her. She wasn't ready. She'd never been ready when it came to him.

Pushing away from him she looked him in the eyes once more. It was Sasuke's turn to feel intimidated, they were as cold and sharp as ice.

"Why?" she asked, and her voice matched her gaze. "So you can leave again? I think you've used up all the trust anyone has a right to."

Pulling herself away from his arms she stood up. "You're just lucky that the decision isn't up to me," she snapped, before whirling on the spot and exiting his cell.

Sasuke stared at where she had left, the memory of her golden hair shining as she spun away from him stuck on permanent repeat in his mind. What was he going to do now? Despair, deeper then any he'd felt thus far, sunk into him. He'd lost her.

--

"See, I told you seduction techniques wouldn't work on that ice-prick," Ino grumbled, feeling horribly humiliated with herself for having gone that route with him.

"What are you talking about?" Tsunade asked, eyebrow arched in amusement. "He sure looked talkative to me."

"Yeah, but he's still trying to pretend he came back because of me," Ino countered.

Tsunade was silent for a short moment. When Ino noticed her Hokage's lack of response her gaze darted over to see Tsunade looking at her contemplatively.

"Ino, I have to consider all the options," Tsunade said gently, knowing this was the last thing the girl wanted to hear.

Ino just looked at her, confused.

"What if he's telling the truth?"

The confusion on Ino's face was replaced with shock, and she spluttered, incapable of forming coherent words.

"Ino, he came back of his own free will, and all of his actions and words point to the fact that he's telling the truth. We have to seriously consider the possibility that he came back for you."

A wave of fury rolled off of Ino. "Well, if he did he can just turn right back around. I don't want him here!"

Tsunade responded with a chilling tone of her own. "Ino, Sasuke will be a great benefit to Konoha – if we can ensure his mental stability. And you seem to be the most capable of doing that at the present time.

Ino froze, unsure of where Tsunade was headed.

"So I think we will release Uchiha Sasuke – into your care. You will be responsible for re-integrating him into society.

Ino's mind was racing. There had to be a way out of this! "But if your assumptions are correct, and I die, then he'll just go back on his revenger's kick and betray Konoha again," the Interrogation specialist protested.

"And that's why you will be relieved from active duty until he is mentally stable," Tsunade finished. "I doubt I need to tell you that it's in your best interests to re-integrate him into society as quickly and as successfully as possible."

Ino looked like she was about to refuse, so Tsunade dealt the finishing blow. "Ino, this is a direct order. You will complete this mission." The Hokage's stern gaze lightened as she tried to warm Ino up to the idea. "It's S-ranked, by the way, since we don't know the dangers Sasuke could present, and you'll be payed accordingly."

Somehow that didn't make Ino feel much better at all.

Shoulders slumped in resignation Ino nodded her agreement and stalked back into Sasuke's cell.

Tsunade watched her with a bemused expression on her face. The young kunoichi's feelings about the Uchiha traitor must be strong, she mused. Ino never hesitated to throw her life or anything else on the line for Konoha, but this – this she tried to refuse. It was definitely interesting, but also why Ino was perfect for the job - that is, aside from Sasuke's presumed feelings. It meant that she would be looking out for anything that would allow her to be rid of him, and so would catch if he was lying sooner than anyone else.

The real question in the Hokage's mind now was how to get Sasuke to let go of the blonde after his rehabilitation. Would any of this even work?

* * *

Just to be clear, all that crap in the cell - that was acting. Ino is not falling for Sasuke again. I'm only on the fifth chapter, after all.


	6. Chapter 6

AN: Hello everybody, I am here, with a new chapter. Unfortunately, I really wouldn't get your hopes up, I had to force this one out. This story needs some reworking, so I am posting this chapter to let you all know that it may be a while before the next update. I have to be honest with myself, and this story isn't particularly good. I am going to fix it - I may have to go back and rework some chapters, but I really don't like redoing things. We'll see.

I think I need to take a bit of a break from writing and spend some more time thinking, so that's what I'll do. This story is not going inactive or anything, I know what I want to do with it, I just need to figure out exactly how. I'm also pondering some other story ideas I think are pretty good, although they are not SasukexIno pairings. I've decided I don't particularly like writing Sasuke in chaptered fics. He doesn't listen to me very well.

So, there's your heads up, see you in a few!

**Chapter 6:**

Sasuke was shocked when Ino stalked back into his cell, obviously fuming about something.

"Put this on and follow me," she ordered, throwing a long, hooded dark cloak at the ex-avenger.

"Why?' Sasuke asked, wary. She better not think she could get rid of him.

"Because I told you to, now put it on," she snapped. Her arms were crossed defensively and she was glaring daggers. Whatever was going on, she wasn't happy about it. With the way things had been going between them lately, this was probably a good thing for him.

Silently deciding to go along with her – for now – Sasuke threw the cloak around his shoulders. Sighing, Ino marched up to him and pulled the hood up so it completely concealed his face.

"You will not speak to anyone without my permission. You will not reveal your face. You will stay with me and not attempt to go anywhere else. Any violation of this trust will result in a re-declaration of your status as a missing-nin," the Interrogation head explained tonelessly before exiting the cell. She stood at the door as she waited for Sasuke to follow before closing it behind him and marching down the hall, not even looking back to make sure he was following.

But of course, he was.

It was dark outside, Sasuke noticed idly. Of course that made sense – there was less chance of arousing suspicion. Ino led him along the streets instead of taking the usual shinobi path on the roofs. He assumed it was because most civilians would have turned in by now, and she did not want to run into any shinobi.

"Hey Ino-chan!" a loud and surprisingly familiar voice rang out.

It was none other than Naruto. He was just exiting a restaurant with a group of other people – probably various members of the Konoha 12.

"Hey Naruto," Ino waved back. "I'll catch ya later, okay?" she said pointing at Sasuke. Naruto looked confused for a moment, before he noticed what she was pointing at and nodded his head in understanding. She was working. He wondered who the person under the cloak was, before dismissing it as unimportant and turning back to the group just in time to laugh at Kiba's attempts to flirt with a passing civilian.

Sasuke continued to follow Ino down the street, finally recognizing their destination. So, she was taking him to see the Hokage. Something told him that, one way or another, this was going to be it.

-_-_-

Sasuke entered the Hokage's office behind Ino and stood there quietly in the background, obeying her every order.

"Tsunade-sama, I have brought you the prisoner, as you requested. Uchiha Sasuke, I release you into her care," she intoned formally, obviously following some sort of protocol.

Correctly assuming that meant that her previous orders were now null, Sasuke threw back his hood and met the Hokage's gaze.

After staring levelly at the dark haired man in front of her for a moment, Tsunade announced her final decision.

"Uchiha Sasuke, after hearing all the evidence laid before me by my chief interrogator, I have reached my decision regarding your status as missing-nin."

Sasuke gulped to keep back his fear. What would he do if they tried to send him away from Ino? No. He wouldn't let that happen. Ino was his.

"We are willing to revoke your status as missing-nin and accept you back as a ninja of Konohagakure," Tsunade continued.

A surge of happiness and relief welled up in Sasuke's chest. They weren't going to try and make him leave?

"However, as you have been declared mentally unstable," Sasuke shot a glare at Ino when he heard this, "you will be under constant supervision. I will place you in the charge of one of our jounin until we can be certain both of your loyalty and of your sanity. Do you accept?"

While not particularly thrilled with the idea of being babysat, the truth was that Sasuke had no where else to go. He would take any conditions that they stuck him with and work through it. For Ino.

Mutely the sole remaining Uchiha nodded his head, eyes wide as he wondered who they'd stick him with. Kakashi? Wait, surely some of the Konoha 12 had reached jounin status, maybe they'd place him with Neji...or Naruto? As long as whoever it was didn't try to keep him away from Ino, he really didn't care.

"Excellent, Yamanaka Ino, I place Uchiha Sasuke under your care. You are responsible for his rehabilitation into the village."

Shocked, he turned to see Ino's reaction while restraining the urge to thank Tsunade on bended knee.

Noticing the blank face Ino kept on, Sasuke was certain that Ino had known about this before hand. Her voice was strained as she accepted the guardianship and Sasuke couldn't hold back a grin. This would make things very interesting.

_-_-_

Sasuke accompanied Ino back to her house silently. There was no need to provoke her into showing emotion, he'd gotten what he wanted – for now.

Ino was also silent, but internally she was fuming. Was she never going to be rid of him? Opening the door she shooed the sharingan user inside before closing it and leaning against it, drawing a deep breath. Okay, she could do this. She could do –

"What are you smirking at?" she snapped. Sasuke had removed his hood and was looking at her with obvious amusement.

"Nothing," he said shrugging, knowing she wouldn't be happy that he enjoyed her obvious reactions to his presence. Was it because she hated him, like she'd made very clear in his cell, or was it because she really liked him?

Ino glared at him, catching his train of thought in the way his eyes moved over her body.

"Get over yourself," she snorted. "I'm not twelve years old anymore, and no matter what anyone says, you're still a traitor to Konoha."

Ino then bustled past Sasuke and into her kitchen, effectively cutting off any further attempts at conversation.

Not that Sasuke minded. He simply followed Ino into the kitchen, and sat himself down at the kitchen table. With his head propped up on his arm, he spent the entire time she was preparing something for the two of them to eat staring at her. Watching her in this domestic environment was relaxing, and for a moment he could imagine life like this. Ino making him supper, children coming home from school...

His musings were cut off when Ino slammed a food-filled plate down in front of him and silently sat in her own seat. The single-mindedness with which she was eating did not allow for any conversation. Sasuke wondered how long she could keep this up before she snapped.

It wasn't until she'd cleared the supper dishes, Sasuke's hungry eyes on her the entire time, that she finally deigned to speak to him again.

"I took the liberty of picking up some things for you to wear," Ino said, a trifle sullenly. He had been right – she had known about his fate before hand. "Follow me," she said as she led the way down the hall and opened another door. "You'll sleep here. I'm leaving the room for exactly five minutes. When I get back you better be ready for bed, because that's where you'll be for the rest of the night."

"Why Ino, I didn't know you felt that way," Sasuke said with a leer.

Geez, even when he's insane, he's still an arrogant bastard, Ino thought as she slammed the door on his face.

-_-_-

She entered his room again exactly five minutes later carrying a pair of handcuffs. Not just ordinary handcuffs – those had proven completely useless in the interrogation cell – but super-strong chakra resistant handcuffs. He would probably be able to break them, she mused, but the resulting chakra surge would wake her and alert her of his activities.

Sasuke looked askance at the handcuffs from where he sat at the edge of the bed. His eyebrow was raised, as if to tell her that he didn't know she was into that sort of thing. Ignoring both him and the light blush that covered her cheeks at the thought the blonde handcuffed one of his hands to the bed.

When she'd heard that the Uchiha was going to be living with her, she'd resolved to take no chances. She liked her life, thank-you very much, and she wanted to keep it.

"Just to make sure I'm not murdered in my sleep," Ino reassured him as she stepped away.

"I would never hurt you," Sasuke said quietly, looking at her in that horrible way he had.

Stiffening Ino huffed out of the room, before collapsing into her own bed. She felt like this mission with Sasuke was the equivalent of digging her own grave.

_-_-_

Ino was startled from her reverie when she noticed that the noises had stopped, probably a while ago – and what was that smell?

She had been unable to sleep all night – the terrifying avenger had cried and moaned and whimpered all night long. Ino shuddered – she didn't even want to imagine how horrible his nightmares must have been.

The smell was stronger now, and curious, Ino made her way to the kitchen, glaring at Sasuke's door as she passed it.

Stupid Uchiha, robbing her of her precious sleep.

The sight that greeted her in the kitchen almost made her go into shock. There was Sasuke. In the kitchen. _Cooking_. And not handcuffed to the bed where she'd left him.

"What are you doing?" Ino asked, terror and anger warring for dominance in her voice.

"I was hungry," Sasuke shrugged.

"B-but I – you were – how?"

"I was hungry," he explained again. "Did you want some?" he offered her a plate.

Half-suspecting it to be poisoned Ino sniffed it curiously. It smelled okay. She waited until Sasuke had begun eating his – the poison theory still seemed likely to her – she hesitatingly raised her fork to her mouth and tried it.

It was – edible. That was about it really. And kind of cardboardy.

"What did you do to it?" Ino asked, shocked. Rubbery eggs she could imagine, but cardboardy?

"Nothing special. Do you like it?" Sasuke's eyes were shining with something akin to pride, and since him gaining confidence was one of the quickest ways to restore his sanity, she decided not to comment. Much.

"Where'd you learn to cook?" she asked, masking her amusement as she tried to stomach the food.

"When I lived – I took care of myself, mostly, while I was away," he said a little more quietly.

"Well, I shouldn't eat anymore, I've got to retain my figure," Ino said, dumping the remains of her food in the garbage, glad that Sasuke didn't know she'd stopped dieting years ago. He finished up and followed her as she headed out the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Ino asked him, glaring a little.

"With you," he said simply. "You're responsible for me, remember. Leave me alone and I might cause trouble, and it will all be your fault."

"Fine," Ino grumbled. She supposed she ought to let Naruto know he was back – the brat was going to kill her when he found out he was finding out two months after the fact, better not to give him any more motivation.

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Reviews make me write (more)!


	7. Chapter 7

AN: It's a ninjas' apartment complex. No buzzer, no doorman. They're too used to visitors at all hours of the night and they can take care of themselves anyway. Besides, a doorman wouldn't be much help in stopping someone who wanted to kill them.

I've been dreading writing this chapter for so long, but it was probably the most fun I've had yet. It's the first time I've done a scene in any detail with Naruto, see. And probably good to get out of my way since I've started a shot NaruIno.

Anyway, I live. I was experiencing both personal and technical difficulties. It was a very crazy semester. It'll probably happen again, but I'll always come back :)

Read on, my pretties.

**Chapter 7:**

Sasuke walked out into the bright, sunlit streets of Konoha right behind Ino. After being in darkness for so long he felt a little overwhelmed but he adjusted as quickly as he could and kept close to the blonde. Tsunade had given him the perfect excuse to stick to her like a leech, and he fully intended to take advantage of it.

"Where are we going?" he asked conversationally.

Ino shot a glare at him out of the corner of her eye. "Well, you're officially back in Konoha now," she said reluctantly. "Naruto will kill me if I don't take you to see him right away."

The pair made their way quickly through the streets of Konoha. It was still fairly early in the morning so everyone who was up was going about with a sense of purpose and minding their own business. Ino was relieved that no one recognized Sasuke or stopped to ask who he was. She was to act as his bodyguard (not that he needed one) as much as his babysitter, and she didn't feel like dealing with angry mobs and the like.

It didn't take them long to reach an apartment building and Sasuke looked at it in confusion when he saw Ino start to head inside.

"I thought we were going to Naruto's," he said, even as he followed Ino through the doors.

"We are. This is his building... You didn't expect him to stay living in that dump he used to call an apartment, did you? He's a hero; he doesn't have to deal with that crap anymore. Mostly." While Ino explained things to him she'd been leading him up a few flights of stairs. By the time they reached the third floor Sasuke was feeling fairly stupid for expecting everything to remain the same. Hadn't Ino herself provided ample evidence of how much people might have grown?

Ino went down the third floor corridor before knocking on the door of room 315. It was silent for a few minutes, and so Ino knocked again, louder. Still no answer.

"I know you're awake Naruto! Answer the door or I'll break it down!" Ino screeched out, probably waking the entire hall. Sasuke just stood behind her, looking stoic. He was actually incredibly nervous about this reunion. Naruto was his best friend, his brother. Unlike with Ino he'd seen Naruto a few times since he'd abandoned Konoha. They hadn't been pleasant.

"I'm coming!" Naruto yelled back. "Don't break down my door you crazy psychopath!"

"What did you call me?" Ino screeched, her voice rising an octave and several decibels.

"Will you crazy blondes shut the hell up!" someone else yelled from down the hall.

Naruto reached the door and quickly pulled it open – he obviously took Ino's threat seriously.

"You shut up!" he and Ino shouted at the mysterious voice down the hallway before turning and grinning at each other. Obviously this morning routine was, well, routine. Then Naruto's look changed to one of dread and he pushed Ino aside and slammed Sasuke against the wall.

"Get out of here, Ino," Naruto said, his voice deadly cold. "Evacuate the building and then tell Tsunade."

Ino merely stood there. Gawking at him.

"Now!"

Apparently Naruto had failed to notice that Sasuke was not fighting back against his chokehold and was slowly turning an odd purplish colour.

"Naruto," Ino said gently, beginning to walk toward him.

"It's Sasuke," Naruto said. "I don't know how much longer I can hold him. Get out of here!"

"Sasuke?" many voices asked and there was the sound of frantic scrabbling as heads poked out from doors all around the hall.

Bloody ninja hearing, Ino sighed to herself. Why hadn't she just invited Naruto over to her place?

"Yes, it's Sasuke. And he's not fighting back," she pointed out. Naruto looked at her in confusion before turning to pay attention to Sasuke for the first time since he'd attacked him.

"Naruto. You need to let him go now. You're killing him," she said calmly.

"You can't tell me you still have feelings for the bastard?" Naruto said in disbelief. "You said you hated him!"

"I do!" Ino protested, before calming herself once more. "I do, Naruto. And I haven't forgiven him. But he's a ninja of Konoha now, and he's under my protection, so could you please let him go? If you kill him Tsunade might revoke my status as a kunoichi."

"He's back?" Naruto said quietly, removing his arm from Sasuke's throat. The prying faces in doorways disappeared to wrestle with their own thoughts on the matter and leaving what was obviously about to become a very personal moment. Ino nodded.

"You're back?" he asked again, looking at Sasuke intensely. Sasuke nodded, massaging his throat as he took in deep gulps of air.

"You're back!" Naruto shouted jumping up and grabbing Sasuke in tight hug. This lasted for a moment until his intense shock subsided and Naruto pulled away. "I mean," he said as he punched Sasuke on the back and continued in a manly voice quite unlike his previous, and rather girlish, shriek. "You're back. Good for you." But the insane grin on his face gave away his excitement.

"Hi, Naruto," Sasuke said quietly.

"Are you going to invite us in?" Ino asked pointedly.

"Since when do you wait for an invitation?" Naruto asked.

"Good point," Ino smiled before walking into Naruto's apartment followed by Sasuke and Naruto.

Sasuke sat next to Ino on Naruto's couch and Naruto sat across from them, still grinning like a madman. Ino looked at Sasuke's neck with detached concern. He looked like he was still having trouble breathing... she stopped a wicked grin from spreading over her face. Good.

"Wait a second," Naruto said as he looked at the pair. "How come Ino knew you were back before I did? What kind of best friend are you?" he wailed, looking at Sasuke with his famous puppy dog eyes.

Sasuke groaned. Naruto hadn't changed at all. "She was my interrogator," he said calmly, an evil grin appearing on his face.

"Your...interrogator? How long have you been back?"

"A little over two months," Sasuke said with a shrug, his grin growing wider at the explosion he was sure would follow.

"Two months!" Naruto roared. "Two months and nobody's told me!" He turned his pathetic puppy eyes on Ino. "I thought you were my friend."

"Tsunade's orders," Ino said shrugging, brushing him off without a thought. "Have you got anything to eat? I'm starving."

"You only like me because I feed you," Naruto grumbled, but Ino just laughed at him so he went to get her some breakfast.

"I thought you were on a diet," Sasuke said, glaring at Ino accusingly. Ino just shrugged.

"So...you two are...closer than I remember," Sasuke said hesitantly. He hadn't thought that Ino may be attached to someone, but seeing how easy the two blondes were around each other made the possibility glaringly obvious.

"Hm? Oh, yes. Naruto and I were thrown together for a couple missions and realized how much we couldn't stand each other's presence. It's a beautiful friendship," Ino said with a smirk that would not have looked out of place on Anko.

"Friendship?" Sasuke asked, in need of clarification.

Ino, who had taken a compact from her purse and was preening stopped looking at herself in the mirror and turned to face Sasuke, eyes wary.

"Yes, friends."

"He doesn't have a girlfriend yet, does he?" Sasuke pushed needing more information.

"No-" Ino began.

"And you don't have a boyfriend?"

Ino locked her jaw and glared at Sasuke. No way in hell was she telling him.

Unfortunately Naruto was unaware of the tension that existed between his friends.

"No, she doesn't," he said with a laugh. "Although it's not for lack of suitors, let me tell you. She's secretly turning them down because her heart is filled with longing for one man. Only he can fill the void in her heart..."

Sasuke was listening to Naruto with interest until Ino interrupted.

"Get over yourself, Naruto. Just because you're about to be Hokage doesn't mean every girl is dying to get into your pants."

"You know you love me Ino," Naruto said as he presented her with a plate of French toast (he'd been in the middle of making himself breakfast when Ino had arrived).

"No, I love your cooking. There's a difference."

"I feel so used," Naruto said in fake despair as he sunk into the chair opposite the duo.

Sasuke was beginning to feel uncomfortable being in the same room as the two. They obviously had a very close friendship. And his earlier assessment had been wrong. Naruto had changed, he was just better at hiding it than Ino. This Naruto was more confident and less of an idiot...this Naruto might be able to beat him in battle without calling on the powers of Kyuubi. Sasuke shivered at the thought.

He sat in silence while Ino and Naruto ate and prattled on about various things. It wasn't until a good half hour later that they returned their attention to Sasuke.

"We really need to work on your social skills, Sasuke," Ino said bemusedly. "Here you are in the room with your best friend who you haven't spoken to in years and you have nothing to say."

"Don't you know, Ino," Naruto chimed in. "He's the strong, silent type. It's what makes all the ladies swoon." His face immediately assumed a constipated look as he grunted out Sasuke's favourite monosyllable. "Hn."

Ino laughed and then shifted her position into a more serious stance. "Naruto, I have a favour to ask of you."

"Anything for you, Ino" Naruto said as went on bended knee and clasped her hand to his heart.

"Get up you idiot. This is serious," she said, smacking him lightly on the arm. Naruto was immediately seated in his chair and listening intently.

"Okay," he said quietly.

"I've been assigned as Sasuke's guardian until we can be certain he doesn't mean to betray us again."

"I thought that's what he went to you for," Naruto said, looking at her curiously.

"It is...but you can't be too careful," Ino replied, looking at him levelly. Naruto nodded.

"You need me to watch him sometimes?"

"I think so. But there's more. The other reason I'm to watch him is because we're not certain that he's, well, sane."

Sasuke glared at her.

"No problem," Naruto said. "I'll be happy to watch him for you if you need a break."

"Thank-you," Ino sighed, relieved as Naruto's gaze switched from Ino to Sasuke and back again. "It won't pose any complications?" she asked, just to make sure.

"It'll be fine."

Why did Sasuke get the feeling he was missing something?

"So, can we take him to meet everyone else?" Naruto asked, jumping up eagerly.

"I'm not sure. You think it'd be okay?"

Naruto shrugged. "Your call. It'd probably do him some good."

"You know, I'm sitting right here," Sasuke groused. He was beginning to get tired of being ignored.

"Yes, yes," Ino said absently, patting him on the head. "Hush now." Sasuke just grunted and gave up.

"I don't want to parade him around Konoha yet though. Who knows how the civilians will react," Ino said, worriedly.

"Good point," Naruto agreed. Both blondes were starting to grin like maniacs and Sasuke was starting to grow very, very, concerned.

"Only one choice then," Ino said, her grin growing even larger.

"Yep. Only thing left," Naruto said, shaking his head in resignation even as his grin threatened to take over his face.

"You want to do it, or shall I?" Ino asked formerly.

"Well, it looks as though you've already got a project on your hands. Leave it to me," Naruto said.

"Very well," Ino agreed. "Six o'clock sound good? We can make a dinner out of it."

"It sounds excellent," Naruto agreed as he let Ino and Sasuke out of his apartment with a bow.

"Until tonight," he said, blowing a cheeky kiss at Ino before slamming the door in her and Sasuke's face.

AN: Okay, this chapter probably seems a little odd, given Ino's prior persona. Allow me to elaborate. Naruto is freaking awesome – I didn't realize how awesome until I wrote this chapter.

That's really all that I needed to say. His personality is so warm and infectious that around him Ino is a lot more like her old self. Their personalities just work off each other so well. I'll explain it in more detail later in the story...probably next chapter, actually... but I just wanted to let you know that her behaviour in this chapter isn't meant to make her sound completely okay. Rather it's to illustrate the difference between what should be (how she is around Naruto) and what is (how she is around everyone else).


	8. Chapter 8

AN: And the story lives. So I am officially back from my... journeyings. Anyway, the story will continue as promised. Updates will be sporadic but they will happen, and hopefully this story can be finished without much further ado. I am so far out of what is happening in the Naruto manga that it doesn't even make a difference anymore. Obviously, this story is still hopelessly AU. But still awesome. Hopefully :P Read on! And let me know what you think, it took me a while to get back into this fic and I've been sitting on the first part for a while.

* * *

The party was definitely a success. Ino's fellow members of the Konoha 11..12…11, oh, whatever, had arrived at or shortly after the appointed hour. Naruto had managed to get there first to lay out a buffet style spread – he had become quite the culinary genius of late.

Sakura had been the next to arrive, and when she had seen Sasuke in his leaf forehead protector she had broken down into tears and run into Naruto's arms. "Why didn't you tell me?" she sobbed into his chest as he gently rubbed her back.

"I just found out myself this morning, it's Ino you should be pulling this sob fest for," he said with a smirk in his fellow blonde's direction.

Sakura abruptly stopped crying with a visible show of effort and pulled herself together. Ino stepped briskly behind Sasuke, hoping to distract her best friend with his dashing good looks.

It didn't work.

"Ino-pig! Is this where you have been disappearing to lately?"

"Yes," Ino shrugged. "I _am_ the head of the interrogation department."

"Right," Sakura sighed. "Ok. Nice to see you again Sasuke." She gave him a tight hug and a stern look. "You owe me some catch-up time later this week once you are all settled."

He nodded mutely, surprised at the changes he noted in her. While she was still emotional she was obviously better at controlling herself. And clearly, she was no longer obsessed with him. That hurt a little – did no one feel the same way about him as they once had?

The rest of their group met Sasuke with surprise and wariness. They were pleased to see him back, but unwilling to really accept his return. It had been so long, and they just couldn't bring themselves to believe in Sasuke anymore. They circled amongst each other, talking and laughing, and casting wary glances to the corner chair he had set himself up in. Every once in a while someone would come up to speak to him for a moment, and politely welcome him back to the village. But they were all withdrawn and tense around him.

The worst moment, in Sasuke's mind, was when the older ninja finally started to arrive. Kurenai, Genma, Anko, they all were polite but distant, nothing new in that. He had never really known them. But when Kakashi showed up, the look in his one eye sent a bolt of remorse through the former avenger's chest. And he realized why everything was so different. He had betrayed them all. He had taken everything they had given him, their time, their friendship, their love, their techniques and protection and training, and he had thrown it away and tried to kill them.

The feelings of guilt brewing inside him paralyzed him, and he just sat there, frozen with grief. How could he have done that? What kind of monster was he? The tossing waves of guilt reached new levels and he couldn't take it anymore, standing abruptly he turned and bolted from the apartment and out into the dark night. Anything to be away from there.

Sasuke's sudden movement and departure froze all the others at the party. The air was tense as Ino, who had been chatting with Neji, quickly analyzed the situation as she sent her mind probing for Sasuke's. He wasn't running, and he just seemed confused and hurt. With a sigh she motioned for the others to stand down and went to check up on him herself. Why was she the one who had to deal with him?

Ino found Sasuke sitting on a bench a few blocks from the apartment. He was sitting hunched over his knees, curled in on himself protectively. She could hear his unsteady breathing as she slowly lowered herself onto the bench next to him.

Her hand went out as if to touch his back, but she abruptly pulled it back to her lap. He didn't deserve comforting gestures from her, and she didn't want to give them to him.

"What was that about?" she asked drily.

"They all hate me," Sasuke said despondently.

"You're surprised?"

"Yes!...No. I just didn't think…"

"That, Uchiha, is glaringly obvious. Can we go back in now? I was having fun."

"Why?" Sasuke raised his head and glared at her. "So you can flirt with Neji some more?"

Ino's eyebrow quirked upward. "Me? Flirt with Hyuuga? Now there's an idea. That could be fun! Come on, let's go." She jumped and grabbed his arm, tugging at it ineffectually.

"No," Sasuke pouted. How could she? He had told her how he felt about her, hadn't he? Told her that he had come back to be with her. And she wanted to go flirt with Hyuuga Neji? Not if he had any say in it.

Ino's eyes narrowed into a glare of her own. She rarely had an opportunity to be with so many of her friends at once, and here the jerk was, ruining her life some more. Things were supposed to be easier now that she didn't have to interrogate him. She was supposed to have a life again. She would have a life again!

"Fine," she said airily, dropping his arm with a toss of her long, blonde hair. "You stay here and…brood. Or whatever it is you are doing. I am going to go have fun." She flounced off without a backwards glance.

She hadn't made it ten steps before Sasuke was beside her, grabbing her wrist and pulling her gently to a stop.

"No," Sasuke said again, firmly. Ino was his, she was not going to spend her time with everyone else.

"Excuse me?" she said, her voice rising warningly.

"I said no, you are not going back there. You have to stay with me." His hold on her wrist tightened, and the next thing he knew he was lying flat on his back in the middle of the road, a furious Ino sitting with a knee on his chest and a kunai to his throat.

"Never," she hissed menacingly, "Ever try to tell me what to do. _I_ watch _you_. You do what _I_ say. And never forget that."

Sasuke was surprised that she had managed to pin him. He could get out of it now, of course, but Ino was acting like she had in the Interrogation chambers, and that was frightening in and of itself. He elected to stay put and give her this victory – it seemed safest. He nodded slightly, wary of the kunai hovering around his neck.

"Excellent," she said with a cold smile. She was off him faster than a blink and on her way back to the party. "Follow me."

* * *

So... review!


	9. Chapter 9

AN: It's pretty short, but think about how quickly (relatively speaking :)) I updated! Plus, this is where the natural chapter break is. So I have plotted out this story up until the turning point (in about four more chapters) and then I'll go from there. I think there will be a few more chapters of about this length too. But the story is moving onwards. Let me know what you think!

Thanks to all my wonderful reviewers! I was glad to see some of you are still around! (You know who you are).

Finally, I am posting some of my ideas on my profile for my next fics, so let me know what you want.

~Shelves~

Sasuke was not happy. He was, in fact, very, very, unhappy. Ino, it appeared, had not been kidding about flirting with Hyuuga Neji. And part of him could not help but wonder if it was his fault for bringing it up in the first place- which did not help his current emotional state at all.

"So," Ino said with a grin as she absent-mindedly played with her long, blonde hair and leaned in ever closer to the Hyuuga. "What else have you been up to lately?"

To make matters even worse, Neji actually seemed to be enjoying her attention. He leaned over conspiringly and answered her in a low voice. Ino flashed a brilliant grin as she giggled flirtatiously at him, gently swatting his arm in a teasing gesture.

"Hey, Neji," she said suddenly. Sasuke's eyes narrowed further and he stood up and began slowly making his way towards her. Enough was enough. "The White Devil is playing at The Treehouse this month, have you seen it yet?"

"Yes, it was very good," Neji said with a small smile, not missing her suggestion. "I wish I could invite you to accompany me – a show of that calibre is definitely worth watching more than once – but I leave in two days on an extended mission."

Ino pouted. Sasuke's heart leaped up. She wanted to see The White Devil? He could take her to see The White Devil.

"Oi, Ino," Kiba suddenly spoke up from a few chairs away from the blonde where he had been talking to Naruto and Hinata. "You want to see The White Devil? Let me take you next Saturday, I already have two tickets."

Sasuke froze, confused. Why would Ino go with Kiba? She was supposed to go with him!

"Seriously?" Ino squealed. "I'd love to go with you, thanks!"

"It's a date then," Kiba said with a grin and a wink, before turning back to his conversation.

Sasuke could feel his anger building up inside him, and found himself hard pressed to even want to do something about the killer intent he was releasing. The others in the room all noticed, he assumed, as they were more than competent ninja. But they elected to ignore him as if nothing was happening. Kiba continued his conversation with Naruto and Hinata while Ino sat down right next to Neji and chatted away. How could they all be so casual about this?

His anger was interrupted by the gentle and yet ominous sound of a throat clearing. He knew that chakra. Turning slowly Sasuke saw that Tsunade had entered, along with Shizune. The look the Hokage was giving him was more than enough to help him reign in his temper. Sasuke shuddered. He couldn't afford to mess up – they would try to make him leave Ino.

The evening progressed into the night, and eventually Ino began to kick people out of her apartment so she could get some sleep, darn it. The shinobi slowly trickled out as they said their goodbyes. Tsunade approached Ino's post at the door and pulled her aside.

"How goes things?" she asked Ino, and then laughed at the grimace that made its way across the younger blonde's face. "That bad, huh?"

Ino nodded.

"Well, you seem to be keeping him in line, at least, so good job," Tsunade continued. "Has there been any further development with regard to his feelings for you?"

"Tsunade-sama," Ino said with a sigh. "We've been through this already. He really doesn't feel anything for me. And honestly? Even if he did it wouldn't matter. I'll never think of him like that again."

"That's your prerogative, Ino," Tsunade said gently, raising her hand up to rest on Ino's shoulder as she looked her steadily in the eye. "But be careful. He's very powerful. And if it's not you it's going to be someone. We do need to re-introduce the sharingan into the village – it's why we took him back."

"What?" Ino asked, blue eyes wide.

"The sharingan – we couldn't let that fall into the hands of another village. You don't like him, then that's fine. But keep a look out for someone who does and make it work Ino, we need to give him a reason to start a family here."

With that Tsunade removed her hand and left, while Ino stood there, shocked.


	10. Chapter 10

AN: I'm...confused? It appears that people are reading this story, and yet there is a very distinct lack of reviews. Feedback is greatly appreciated. Yes, the chapters have shrunk a little in length, but that's what fits this part of the story. There's not much going on physically at this point and I can only wade through so much emotional angst in one chapter.

Anyway, we get to see a little bit of Sasuke and where he's at in this chapter. I've actually plotted out an ending for this fic (although to be honest i often think Ino and Sasuke shouldn't end up together in this story. He's just so... ARGH! Jerk. You'll see). But the point remains that I have found the stories natural path, and it seems suitably drama-filled and angst ridden. And also allows for the characters to naturally progress down their chosen paths, which was kind of the point of this to begin with. To explore in detail a relationship that technically shouldn't work instead of just 'Sasuke came back, Ino's over him but their friends' (not that I don't love those stories, because lets be honest, I do.). Because Ino is nothing if not loyal, and Sasuke is nothing if not selfish and a traitor, and I wanted to see what would happen if we really looked into that aspect. And I promise a good ending!

Well, now that all that is out of the way, on with the fic!

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Time seemed to pass in disjointed fits and starts. Some days Sasuke accompanied Ino to work as she did her paperwork and worked with her associates (or minions, as Ino liked to call them). Other days when she had to deal with things that were above his clearance level she pawned him off on Naruto, or occasionally Sakura. They were all busy, but knew that Sasuke could not be left alone and so they made it work.

Tsunade's parting comment to Ino the night of the party had not escaped Sasuke's attention, although it didn't seem to affect Ino at all. She continued to behave towards him just as she had before. Cold, sarcastic, and distant. Occasionally a joke and a shared laugh would break the ice between them but it wasn't enough and Sasuke did not understand it.

She had loved him once - that much he knew for certain. She had loved him. And if she had loved him once there was no reason for her not to again. She didn't quite trust him anymore, but if he could just make her understand that his feelings for her were real then surely she would get it. She would love him back.

As for the Hokage's comment that Ino should keep her eyes out for someone else for Sasuke, the brooding male found that almost laughable. There would never be anyone for him but her. She was beautiful, achingly so, and intelligent and strong. She was a fighter and a winner and everything that he was looking for in a wife. Everything he wanted in the mother of his children. If anyone thought that he would ever give her up, they were sorely mistaken. Ino was his.

His brooding was cut short when he realized Sakura was waving her hand back and forth in front of his face, trying to get his attention. He grunted in reply, letting her know that he was listening.

"Ino should be back soon Sasuke, you ready to go?" his former team mate asked with a soft smile.

He nodded silently, but before he could slip back off into his musings Sakura continued to speak.

'Look, Sasuke, I don't know what you're doing to her but you have to stop."

Sasuke's dark eyes cut up abruptly, staring into her pale green ones in confusion.

"You're hurting her. Stop it."

"I'm not doing anything to her," Sasuke contended.

"Then what's wrong with her? She's not well, and she's not talking to me about it. She's been even worse than usual ever since you came back," Sakura said matter-of-factly.

Her words tore a hole in Sasuke's heart. He made her worse? What did she mean?

"Look Sasuke," Sakura elaborated when she sensed his confusion. "Ino's life hasn't been easy since you left. I mean, first you left and that gutted everyone. Me and her especially, but I got over it better than she did."

Sasuke felt glee rise in his chest. She loved him! He knew it!

"And then her sensei died, Sasuke, and she was there and she couldn't save him. He was killed by a member of Akatsuki. And that was that for Ino. Her team got revenge and took out the shinobi that killed their teacher, but Ino has never been the same. She's a better kunoichi because of it, that much is undeniable, but she's not happy. And ever since you came back it's like all her old wounds have re-opened. She wasn't happy before but she was functioning and _alive_. Now…now she's like a ghost. So whatever you're doing to her, stop it."

"I'm not hurting her," Sasuke protested. "I love her. I came back for her! She doesn't believe me though," he pouted.

Sakura stilled, momentarily frozen in shock. "You love her? You told her that?"

"Yes," Sasuke said defiantly, eyes narrowing in concern in case Sakura decided to revert back to her fangirl tendencies. "She keeps ignoring me."

"Hey Forehead!" A bright voice came from the doorway as it was pushed open with a loud bang. "I'm here to relieve you of your duty as temporary Uchiha babysitter."

"Hi Ino," Sakura said slowly, her mind racing with Sasuke's recent admission. "Sasuke and I were just talking about you."

"Oh?" Ino said with a scowl and a glare at Sasuke. "Isn't that interesting. Come on, let's go. I have a lot I need to get done today." Ino spun around and began marching for the door. Sasuke got up to follow and then thought better of it. He sat back down.

"I was just telling Sakura how much I love you," Sasuke threw out at Ino's retreating back.

The blonde froze, body tense and mind racing, before she took another step and walked out of Sakura's apartment, slamming the door behind her.

"You need to be careful," Sakura said as Sasuke rose to follow Ino. He shot her a puzzled glance. "I'm serious," Sakura nodded sagely. "If you really love her, you're in for a hell of a ride trying to win her over."

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, trusting his favourite monosyllable to carry him through this conversation. Sakura had no idea what she was talking about. He loved Ino, and that was all that mattered. Sooner or later she would realize he loved her and they could start living happily ever after, or whatever.

"Shut up," Sakura said, a look of disgust on her features. "You really haven't changed at all have you. This is my friend we're talking about here, don't grunt at me! And just to be clear, I'm rooting for Kiba. Now get out of my house. And if you hurt Ino, I'll break your face."

Sasuke resisted the urge to grunt again and rose, following Ino out of Sakura's apartment. He would be confused by Sakura's threats – she'd never threatened him before – but it was just her jealousy for Ino showing through. That girl was almost despicable.

* * *

And yes, that is Sasuke's opinion of Sakura, not mine. Review! I promise actual plot points in the next chapter (like a date! :O).


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